The Price of Power
by Serys
Summary: Lucky Lucy of Heartfilia. She left that life behind her long ago, but it seems that no matter how far she ran, the past would always find itself back at her feet.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: This is my first full on story for Fairy Tail. I really wanted to start a multi-chapter fic, and this plot bunny wouldn't leave me alone. It's mostly centered around Lucy, but there will be tons of NaLu moments. Anyway, this is the prologue, the first chapter will be posted very soon, so follow the story. Oh yeah, reviews are food for my muse, so please let me know what you guys think! :D**

**Timeline: Right before the Grand Magic Games arc, and The Key Of The Starry Sky arc never happened. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Fairy Tail. It belongs to Mr. Hiro Mashima.**

**Rated K (For now, the rating will go up)**

* * *

_The Price Of Power_  
_-Prologue_

"GET OUT!"

"But, _Luuucy_!"

"No, Natsu!"

"Plea-"

"You destroyed _half_ of the sacred mountain in Shirotsume on the mission! Which, by the way, thank _you_ for the lost Jewel that would have gone to my rent if you hadn't been so hotheaded!"

"Lucy, I'm sor-"

"GET _OUT_!"

Lucy Heartfilia shoved Natsu Dragneel out of the entrance way of her apartment and slammed the door shut.

Her anger was high as she stomped toward the bathroom. Why couldn't Natsu, for once, just _once_, not go crazy and fly off the handle with his need to set fire to everything? It wasn't _that_ hard to do, was it? Gray was an ice mage, and she didn't see him turning everything into freezing blocks of ice.

She had one more week to come up with seventy-thousand jewel for next month's rent, and so far, she didn't have a single jewel to her name.

_This happens almost every month._

Lucy frowned, setting herself at the edge of the tub as she set the water to hot.

_Maybe it's time I started going on missions by myself._

As much as she hated the thought, Lucy knew it was the only way she would be able to make her rent on time. Perhaps once a month, she could take a job by herself that paid just enough to cover her bills. The posting board would surely have something within her capabilities to finish a job on her own, right?

_I'll see what's up tomorrow._

Lucy stripped naked and immersed herself into the hot water. She had many aches and bruises coming back from the job in Shirotsume. And it was a simple request, too! All they had to do was retrieve several medical herbs from the town's sacred mountain at the peak where it only grew. They were also warned of wild animals that migrated there several months ago and made the mountain their new home.

The whole disaster could have been avoided if Natsu wasn't so eager for a fight. The long pathway to the top wasn't even anywhere near to where the sightings were said to be, but sure enough, somehow Natsu had managed to attract a giant pack of them, and well, the rest was history.

Lucy took her time with her bath, making sure all the dirt and grime she acquired while traveling with Natsu was a thing of the past.

As her anger ebbed away, came the room for guilt. She knew Natsu didn't deserve her wrath, even though the destruction of the mountain was caused by him and his never-ending fists of flames, but that's only because he was trying to protect her from the enemy.

After all, Natsu was just being Natsu.

Lucy sighed.

_I'll apologize to him later._

She scrubbed herself clean, and slipped out of the water. The tranquility of her bath and the silence that followed after is what put her body at ease. Everything was always so loud with Natsu. He constantly poked into her personal things, ate all her food and had this annoying snore whenever he slept, which was almost everywhere. She was thankful for the rare moment of reprieve from the everyday stresses of being his partner; it was almost a job all in itself.

Wrapped up in a dark green towel, Lucy made her way out of the en suite and to the closet. Out of habit, her eyes gazed over the bright and shiny wrappings of the birthday gifts given to her by her father; unopened and tucked neatly away at the corner of the closet.

She fingered one of the pink bows, her face softening at the memory of one of her father's rare acts of kindness towards her.

_To my beloved daughter..._

Those words were on every tag, and it had Lucy's lips lifting into a smile. She didn't care about the gifts, or the pretty wrapping paper they came with. It was the simple fact that he had remembered her birthday was what made her refuse to open them. Looking at them gave Lucy a small comfort as it was a one last reminder that she was his daughter, and he loved her.

Thinking back to her childhood and living under his harsh ruling hand, she was struck with regret. Lucy knew there was a lot of things that she could have done differently, but in her own selfish act, she decided to cut all ties from him and run away.

It was one of the hardest things she ever had to do, stepping out of her childhood home, leaving only with the memory of her loving mother and the yearning of what could have been if she had lived. Now, she missed her father just as much, and the pain of losing him was as raw as the day she read his last letter to her.

Blinking back tears, Lucy moved on from the memory of Jude, and grabbed a two piece night ware to sleep in. It was getting colder by the day as autumn gave away to the coming of winter. Soon, she was going to have to buy something thicker to keep her warm at night.

Turning back to her bed, Lucy spotted a piece of paper that she knew wasn't there when she left for her job two days ago. It was folded up twice and placed gently on her pillow. The note's placement looked deliberate; neat and out in the open for her to easily find.

With a trembling hand, she picked it up and slowly unfolded the note, an eerie dread washing over her nerves as she did so.

_**We're watching you, Lucky Lucy of Heartfilia**_


	2. Chapter 2

** A/N: I wanted to map out a darker view of Fairy Tail right after their seven year sleep. I feel that Mashima just didn't focus that much on the shock that everything they knew _changed _so quickly. Anyway, here is the first chapter, hope you enjoy! **

**Setting: Right before the Grand Magic Games, and The Key Of The Starry Sky arc never happened.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Fairy Tail. It belongs to Hiro Mashima.**

**Rated K (the rating will go up)**

* * *

_The Price of Power_

Back and forth, back and forth.

Up and down.

Side to side.

"How did they get in?"

Lucy Heartfilia paced along the floor of her apartment, three pairs of eyes following her every move. She had called her closest friends the moment she realized she wasn't dreaming the nightmare. Panic settled in long before they all arrived, and she had to remind herself several times to breathe.

The thought of someone sneaking into her apartment and placing that note there, right on the place she laid her head at night had her stomach rolling. There was no sign of a break in, the alarm system didn't trip. Even her windows and doors were locked securely. Nothing was stolen, and everything seemed to be exactly where she left it.

"How did they get inside my home?" Lucy repeated.

"Lucy, nothing is going to happen to you," Erza said. She had re-quipped into her Heart Kreuz armor the moment she heard her friend's frantic voice over the phone. In less than five minutes, she was inside Lucy's apartment, taking the scared girl in her arms.

Gray and Natsu, along with Happy, were already present.

"Do you think the others could be targeted as well?" Gray asked. He stood beside Lucy, a look of concern coming across his face. He didn't want to admit it, but the creepy note had him just as nervous as it did her. To think that the others were also in danger made his stomach churn.

Lucy shook her head. The thought did cross her mind, but the words that were written on the note had her believing that she was being singled out.

"It says _Lucky_ Lucy of Heartfilia," Lucy murmured. She had read the note over and over again, not quite believing what it said. "Lucky Lucy. That is what I was called back when...back when I lived with my father."

"So, could this be tied to your dad then?" Happy questioned. He cast his cat-like eyes over at Natsu, who hadn't uttered a word this entire time. He fluttered in the air next to his pink-haired partner trying to catch his attention, but the closed downcast of Natsu's face told him he was going to remain ignored.

"It does make sense," Erza reasoned. "We know that in the past, your father has made some very unfavorable business deals. Maybe before his unexpected passing..." She eyed the blond celestial mage with a guilty look.

Lucy became uneasy at the prospect. She knew what they were thinking. That perhaps Jude Heartfilia had hired another guild to bring her home, just like he did with Phantom Lord. But she knew that wasn't the case.

"No. He knew what happened to me on Tenrou Island, and he also knew it was pointless to try and bring me back home again. I made that clear to him last time," Lucy stated. "My father may have been a stubborn man, but he wasn't stupid. Not to mention that he didn't like to waste his money."

During her heated confrontation with her father, she had told him some very harsh truths about their broken family. And for the second time in her life, she walked away from the fortune and fame that came with being a Heartfilia. She knew she had made her point to him, and she also knew he accepted that she walked her own path in life, no matter how much he despised it.

"Did he have any enemies?" Gray asked her.

"I don't know," Lucy frowned at her lack of information. She racked her brain and tried to remember if he had any unsavory relationships that came with his work. "No one comes to mind. And I don't know what his business had anything to do with me. I was kept out of everything."

"Wasn't your dad poor for a while, Lucy?" Happy asked. "I remember you telling me that he once asked you for some money."

"Yeah." Gray also remembered Lucy's little rant about that. "Did you ever find out how he lost it all? I thought the guy was rich."

"No..." Lucy bowed her head, swallowing the sharp sting of realization back from her throat. All their questions had only reminded her just how distant she actually was from her father. She knew that while she had problems, so did he.

If she closed her eyes, she could still recall the memory of their reunion as if it happened yesterday. Him coming to her, hiding under a dark cloak, unclean and unshaven, he appeared to be a homeless person rather than the sophisticated, uppity man she knew him to be.

His demeanor was very different, as well. He looked like he was sad, scared and nervous, acting as if he was afraid of being caught by something, or _someone_. He had even followed her home that day, which was completely out of character for him.

She could claim that while he didn't seem to care about her or her problems, she was just as guilty. Not once did she ask him how he lost all his money, or if he was alright. He wasn't that great of a father, but it was becoming blatantly apparent to her that she wasn't the perfect daughter, either.

"We know that your dad died, Lucy," Gray pointed out. "But did you find out _how_ exactly?"

"I-I was told that he got sick and passed away." She remembered her visit to the Love and Lucky merchant's guild. She had asked about her father and what the receptionist said was that he had passed on from an illness. What that illness was, she never found out, never felt the need to. She just assumed it was the flu, and he died.

"Do you think he could have been killed?" Happy suggested as he looked at Gray.

"Killed?" Lucy squeaked. The thought didn't even cross her mind. Who would want to kill her dad? Sure, he could be a pain in the ass most of the time, but not enough to merit a death sentence.

"Yeah, think about it," Gray said, following Happy's trail of thought. "Your dad has made a ton of business deals, some of them probably not so cut cloth. Then he loses all his money, and goes into hiding for a while. Don't you think that he maybe got mixed up with some shady characters? What if he promised something to the wrong person and his end of the deal didn't come through?"

Something he said struck a chord with Lucy. In the last letter she read from him, he had spoke of a business negotiation that he had to finalize somewhere. The letter was dated just a couple months before she came back from her seven year sleep.

The letter also came with seven years worth of rent.

Just what exactly was he doing during all that time? Where did he get all that money, anyway? And how?

"I-I don't know," Lucy stuttered. Now that she thought about it, there was a lot of things that just didn't add up to her. The possibility of her father being murdered didn't even pass in her mind. She didn't know anything about the business he ran while living under the same roof. The most she got out of him was that they were a very successful railway company, and it was all she cared to know. It was true that she had no idea what went on during his business meetings and negotiations, but could it be so bad that someone would actually want him dead?

The Heartfilia Konzern was a successful organization. It was one of the most wealthiest and influential conglomerates in all of the Fiore Kingdom. Her father was recognizable, and the Heartfilia name a popular brand. Perhaps Jude's very success could have been his own undoing. He was huge competition, after all, and it painted a giant target on his back.

Money was a very powerful motivator, and if there was one thing that Lucy knew, it was that it can convince anyone to do anything if they were presented with the right amount.

And her father's associates had plenty of it.

But that still left the question: What did any of this have to do with her? If memory served her correctly, the Heartfilia Konzern was no more, it went bankrupt and it was bought out a long time ago.

"Natsu? You've been quiet for a long time," Erza noted, eyeing the fire dragon slayer as he leaned against the wall with his arms crossed. "Are you even listening to this?"

The man in question clenched his jaw in irritation, his onyx eyes remaining closed in thought. Oh, he was listening. He was listening to every word, every sound. He listened to how Lucy's voice pitched when she spoke of her father, how it cracked and stuttered over her current predicament. He heard the echo of her fast beating heart as she continued to stare at the note that started it all; the same note he wanted to crumple up and burn so she didn't have to look at it anymore.

Everyone knew that the one thing to truly set him off was Lucy. He was front and center whenever it concerned her. She was occasionally joked to be his Achilles' Heel, but that was far from the truth. Lucy always had a calming effect on him, despite her quick temper, and he was ready to wage war with whatever and whoever dared to mess with her.

"Should we tell Gramps about this?" Gray suddenly asked.

"I think everyone should be warned about this note, and to keep a look out for anything out of the ordinary," Erza replied.

"The note isn't signed, either," Happy said, reading over the message again. "Have there been any dark guilds around the area recently?"

"We don't know if it's a dark guild, or an official guild, or an independent guild. It might not even be from a guild at all. We don't know where to look, and that leaves us at a great disadvantage!" Everyone could sense that Erza was having trouble keeping in her frustration. She was the strong, capable Titania of Fairy Tail. Even though she had once scoffed that the given title, they knew she took the big-sister role seriously.

"Are we suppose to wait until whoever left her that note to show up again?" Gray asked.

Lucy's breath hitched.

Natsu growled.

"Let them come," Natsu ground out through his bared teeth. "I'll burn anything and everything that dares to lay a finger on Lucy."

"I know you're worried, Natsu," Erza said. "We all are, but let us not forget the mistake we made when we rushed into a guild battle like we did with Phantom Lord. I should also remind you guys that fighting between guilds, if that is what we're dealing with, is still against the law of the Magic Council."

Natsu scoffed, his arms crossing back over his chest as he took his place against the wall again. "Yeah, right. The Magic Council. The same council that shows up at the most convenient of times; right after all the hard work is done. Don't get me started on the Enforcement Corps; what a group of useless pieces of shi-"

"Natsu!" Erza's warning was authoritative and the dragon slayer held back the rest of his insult with a bite of his tongue. "Despite what you think about the Council, they are still in charge here," she continued with a steady glare. "And until we know exactly who is behind this note, there is no use in acting recklessly against any guild."

"The Council is weak right now, Erza," Gray said. "Their popularity is fading, and ever since the Zeref scandal involving two of their members, they haven't been trusted. There also have been tons of conspiracy theories surrounding the Council and it's core members, and with the recent news of Jellal escaping from imprisonment, they have doubled. No one gives them a second thought anymore despite how strict Gran Doma seems."

Erza sighed.

There was a lot of truth in Gray's words. The Magic Council wasn't respected, and after the news spread about two of their members that were on the verge of reviving the demon Zeref, their trust was lost as well. And in the span of seven years, more than half of the Council members had retired, making way for new faces and laws.

They still struggled with the popularity amongst the people, and Gran Doma ruled with an even more strict hand than before. But in spite of this, more crime among mages occurred. Illegal trading and covered up murders were almost everyday happenings. Even Fairy Tail itself is in the middle of shady dealing with a bad loan shark. It wasn't a safe time for any mage right now.

"You can stay with me, Lucy," she finally said. "Pack some of your clothes. It's not a good idea for anyone to be alone."

Lucy nodded with wide eyes and went to go do exactly that.

"What's up, Erza?" Gray inquired.

"We know Lucy is their intended target, but because of her own affiliation with Fairy Tail, everyone could be in danger," she said. "And until we know who we're dealing with, there isn't anything we can do."

"Great." Gray sighed. He didn't like the idea of just standing around and waiting for something to happen. "It's like we're sitting ducks now."

Erza grimaced, and turned toward the front door of Lucy's apartment. Even she hated this sit and wait plan, but it was the only option they had. Perhaps the newly reappointed Master of Fairy Tail could shed some light on the situation.

She went for the door.

"It's almost two in the morning, where are you going?" Gray asked.

"To see Master Makarov, he needs to be informed of this immediately," Erza said, handing him a key. "Take this key and bring Lucy to my rooms. If Ruchio gives you any trouble, tell him that I sent you. And don't leave Lucy's side."

Gray snorted. He was offended that she felt the need to remind him the seriousness of this situation. He cared about Lucy and Fairy Tail just as much as she did. "You don't need to tell me, Erza, I know. But you said so yourself that no one should be alone. I'm going with you."

"Fine." Erza easily relented. "But let's be quick."

"Hear that, flame brain?" was Gray's hollow insult. He tossed the key over to Natsu, who caught it effortlessly with his own mocking retort.

"Yeah, yeah, keep your panties on, ya pervert." Natsu grinned.

"What!?" The Ice-Make mage started.

"Gray!" Erza demanded him with a simple command of his name. She grabbed him by the collar of his white shirt and dragged him out the door, all the while ignoring his verbal protests as he tried to shake free from her strong grip. "You're one that said you wanted to come. Now enough of this, let's go."

The door slammed shut behind them both.

Natsu sighed and wasted no time in following Lucy to her bedroom.

He was still trying to wrap his head around this whole thing. It was only a couple of months since they came back from Tenrou Island and their seven year sleep. It felt like it was just the other day he had faced off against Master Hades and his Seven Kin of Purgatory. He could still feel the injuries of that fight, and to know it happened several years ago still boggled his mind.

So much has changed. Those who stayed behind during the S-Class exam had lived and aged while he was suspended in time and remained the same. Even those whom he thought would never reach his degree of battle were on par with him when they sparred. It was a reality check that Natsu, to this day, still had trouble believing.

And the worst of it all, Fairy Tail, a guild that was once revered for it's magic strength and fierce duty of protecting and helping others, was now a laughing stock in the magic world. Natsu, if anything, was extremely prideful of the guild he was apart of, and it teared at the very fiber of his being to witness Fairy Tail being mocked and shunned like it was now.

He knew Lucy felt the same. Lost and confused, reemerging into a world full of magic that had changed in the course of seven years. And Natsu, he had tried so hard to make the transition easy for himself and for Lucy. He kept up his silly antics, poked at her appearance and sexual confidence. Even during their last mission together, he had been eager to let off some steam. Of course, all of this annoyed Lucy, but if it made her forget the fact that they were so out of sync with the world today, even for just a moment, then he accomplished his goal.

A lot of things were different now, but at least Lucy could count on him to always remain unchanged, an immovable anchor in the midst of the chaos that reigned their everyday lives.

And the last thing they should have to deal with is some creepy stalker with their eyes on his partner.

Coming to an abrupt halt at Lucy's bedroom door, he found her sitting at the edge of the bed, her face buried in her hands. His sensitive nose could detect the distinct smell of salt in the air and something inside him twisted at the knowledge that she was crying.

"Lucy..." Happy glided over from Natsu and perched himself next to the girl on the bed.

Lucy sniffled, and coughed from the onslaught of her own emotions threatening to boil over. She tried to swallow down the harsh stab of a sob that continued to climb it's way back up to her throat.

Natsu stood before her, feeling more dejected and helpless than ever before. There was absolutely nothing he could say that would make everything better for her.

Surprisingly, it was Lucy who started talking.

"I'm still trying to move on from my father's death," she softly spoke, and with Natsu's heightened senses, he had no trouble hearing her whisper. "And now I learn that he may have been killed, possibly by the very people whom he trusted. What am I suppose to think, Natsu?"

He didn't really have an answer for her, and when Lucy finally looked at him, he realized for the first time how heartbreaking beautiful she was. The shine of her tears made her eyes darker than what he was used to. Short wisps of blond hair splayed across her tear stained cheeks, framing her pretty face in a golden glow that had her appearing almost ethereal.

Natsu quietly took his place next to her, wrapping a protective arm around her shoulders in an attempt for comfort. She immediately curled against him, burying her face in the crook on his neck.

There was a heated rush that consumed his entire body when her breath brushed against his throat, almost teasingly. Blood crept just underneath the skin of his cheeks, and despite being a fire mage, he was beginning to feel uncomfortably hot.

Natsu pushed the awkwardness down and away. His feelings sure do have inappropriate moments. And Now wasn't the time for any of this. What Lucy needed right now was a friend.

"We're not sure if that's even true, Luce," Natsu finally said. "This is all just speculation."

Lucy frowned. She reached for the ends of his scale pattern scarf he always wore, and idly threaded her fingers through the tendrils, wrapping the cloth around her hand.

She was just getting used to living with the time skip. There were so many things she had missed, and she felt that fate had cheated her out a goodbye with her father. There was a ton of things that she wanted to say that went unsaid, so many missed opportunities that she let pass by.

He believed that she still lived despite of what he heard happened to her and the only comfort she could find was that during his final days alive, he wrote that she was his pride. He loved her. But what hurt the most was that she never got to say it back. Not once.

"This...is really soft," Lucy murmured.

Natsu's dark eyes lingered on her hands and watched as she toyed and fiddled with his scarf. She looked so small and vulnerable next to his big frame, he thought. She may not have much physical strength, but she was just as steady and firm in her convictions as much as he was. She was passionate and kind, kinder than he would ever be, and that need to protect those virtues ruled over everything else.

The thought of _anyone_ putting their hands on Lucy drove him to the edge of his own animalistic anger.

"And even if all of that is true," Natsu added, gazing down at her. "You know that I won't let anything happen to you."

Lucy gave him a weak smile. "When are you _not_ keeping me safe, Natsu?"

"Ahem!" Happy came out of no where, planting his small blue body firmly between the two of them. "If you lovebird weirdos are done here, I think it's time to head over to Fairy Hills."

Lucy glared, reaching for Happy's tail. He tried to make a quick get-away from her hands, but it was too late. The girl spun him around once by his tail and flung him in the air. "Shut it, cat!"

Okay, perhaps she wasn't _that_ kind, but still.

Happy giggled as he landed swiftly on his feet. He made sure he was far away from Lucy as much her apartment allowed before mocking them once more. "Hehehe, you _liiiiike_ each other."

Cue Lucy's groan of annoyance.

To his own surprise, Natsu found himself smirking at the exchange. He never thought that hearing them bicker back and forth would come in a form of a comfort. He missed it, as it was a small reminder of their time before things got so messed up.

But then Lucy sighed. It looked as if she was going to start a verbal sparring match with the blue Exceed, but stopped. "I'm too exhausted to deal with this," she finally said, reaching for her suitcase. She turned to Natsu, the evidence of today's stresses showing clearly in her brown eyes. "Let's just go, Natsu."

And just like that, everything was complicated again.

Natsu held back his own sigh of defeat and lead the way out.

He felt that tomorrow was going to be just as draining.

* * *

**A/N: And the plot thickens. :I **

**This story will be my take on Lucy's father and his business. ****And, of course, there's the belief that there is no way you can get that rich without getting your hands a little dirty first. I have each chapter lined out, so I'm excited about getting started on the plot now. Thank you for reading, and ..um, review, please? :D**


End file.
